Mother’s pension at risk! The Union and the SPD are arguing about expensive reform plans

The discussion about mothers' pensions is currently gaining momentum, while the Union and the SPD are holding out the prospect of expanding the pension regulations for parents. According to the current plans, all parents should be granted three pension points, regardless of the year of birth of their children. This was done by fr.de reported.

However, the German pension insurance company has warned of the high costs of this measure and questioned the financing. There are currently no targeted contributions to the pension fund for the mother's pension. Parents who are not employed due to raising children do not pay their own contributions. According to existing regulations, up to 2 years and 6 months are counted for children born before 1992, while up to 3 years can be counted for children born after 1992. A maximum of 10 years of child consideration periods can be taken into account, regardless of the year of birth.

High costs and demands for tax financing

For the coming years, the costs of the mother's pension are estimated at 25 billion euros in 2025, around 26 billion euros in 2026 and around 27 billion euros in 2027. An expansion of half a pay point could cost an additional 4.5 billion euros. Gundula Roßbach, President of the German Pension Insurance, has called for mothers' pensions to be financed through taxes. Otherwise, the pension insurance contribution could increase by 0.25 percentage points.

The entitlement to a mother's pension applies to people who receive a pension and whose child-rearing periods for children born before 1992 were taken into account in the calculation. Time spent raising children is usually assigned to one parent, usually the mother, but fathers, same-sex parents, adoptive and foster parents, and grandparents can also apply for this credit. Studies show that maternal pensions do not significantly reduce the pension gap between men and women. Rather, a sustainable improvement in the situation requires a better care infrastructure to make it easier for mothers to return to work.

Continued to report deutsche-rentenversicherung.de about the background of the mother's pension. This was introduced on January 1, 2014 and represents an improved recognition of child-rearing periods for children born before 1992. Since July 1, 2019, there has been a mother's pension II, which recognizes up to 2.5 years of child-rearing for each child born before 1992. For children born after 1992, up to three years of education will continue to be credited.

The plans for a mother's pension III are currently being discussed by the CDU/CSU and SPD, but it remains unclear when and whether these will be implemented. The German pension insurance cannot currently provide any information about these new regulations.